Make Your Home a Sanctuary With Blue Art
Blue skies. Peaceful lakes. Indigo oceans. Endless blue horizons. Starting to feel a bit more relaxed?
There’s a reason that blue is the world’s most popular color. It reminds us of landscapes that offer a sense of peace. It represents the infinite space of the sky and the water that is essential to life.
In Fine Art, blue is more than just a universally appealing color. Artists such as Picasso, Matisse, Van Gogh, and Klein became fixated on the color, producing brilliant, often monochrome oeuvres that changed the art world and the way we look at blue.
In interior design, blue can appear casual and beachy, crisp and traditional, or show regal sophistication. It is both flexible and timeless.
Follow along to find out how to use blue Fine Art in your home to create a creative and tranquil atmosphere.
Blue Will Make Your Home More Spacious
The French artist, Yves Klein, once said “blue has no dimensions. It is beyond dimensions.”
Klein created more than 200 abstract monochrome works with his patented shade of blue that is a matte riff on French Ultramarine. Klein’s blue, known as IKB, is as expansive as the sky, yet, it also has an undeniable intensity that seems to create its own rhythm.
Due to the way that the human eye refracts light, blue appears to be further away than other colors.
“The brain perceives blue in the same way that one might see a distant horizon or an endless twilight sky.
Speaking of twilight, one of Fine Art’s most famous blue paintings is “The Starry Night” by Vincent van Gogh. His swirls of Ultramarine and Cobalt blues enlivened by Indian yellow have captivated viewers for 121 years.
Like many artists, Van Gogh wanted to depict the mysteries of the horizon and what lay beyond.
“I never get tired of the blue sky.” — Vincent van Gogh
Every color of blue, whether light or dark, will give the appearance of distance. This is why it is so often used in interior design and Fine Art to create the sense of everlasting space. A piece of art that primarily features the color blue will draw the eye in, expanding the space beyond the wall.
A Brief History of the Blues of the World
Did you know that blue was the first artificial pigment ever made?
Lapis lazuli, a semi-precious stone, inspired the Ancient Egyptians. The mineral was mined in a remote area of Afghanistan from around 4000 B.C. until the present day. The Egyptians were able to replicate lapis with a mixture of copper, lime, silica, and an alkali element. This ancient compound became known as Egyptian Blue. They painted it on everything from walls to artwork to the ceilings of their tombs.
For Ancient Egyptians, lapis lazuli blue symbolized creation, fertility, and abundance. The color had spiritual connotations as well as links to wealth and royalty.
Eventually, people discovered a way to grind the lapis lazuli stone into a pigmented powder. “Ultramarine” is the name of the resulting color. It was used starting in the 6th century A.D in Buddhist paintings. Then it traveled to Europe during the Renaissance period, where Venitian artists used the expensive pigment to paint religious iconography. The French came up with a synthetic version of the color, which became known as French Ultramarine.
After Egyptian blue and Ultramarine came Prussian blue, Byzantine blue, and indigo.
Indigo is a natural dye produced from Indigofera leaves. Starting in the early 20th century, indigo started to be produced synthetically to color blue jeans worldwide.
Indigo also represents the color of an important heritage artform. When French photographer Réhahn moved to Vietnam his own obsession with the color blue began. He started off by photographing the country’s spectacular Northern landscapes, but he quickly became fascinated by the people who called the area home. The region is populated by a diverse number of ethnic groups who all have their own languages, traditions, and craftsmanship. Many of the tribes, such as the H’Mong and the Dao, use sustainable indigo dye to color their textiles, which are then embroidered or embellished depending on their individual cultural traditions.
“Blue is more than a just a simple color for many world cultures. It is the physical manifestation of heritage skills that have been passed down for generations.” — Réhahn
Every culture in the world has a specific association with blue. Greeks use it to keep away the eyes of the devil. In much of Europe and North America, darker blues are associated with nobility — or blue blood. India’s relationship with the color blue goes a step further. It is considered one of the most sacred colors in the Hindu religion.
Cobalt is the skin tone of Krishna, the Hindu god of compassion, and the most widely worshipped Indian deity. Many children in India dress up as Krishna, painting their faces blue in celebration of their hero.
In Hinduism and Buddhism, blue is the color of the throat chakra, one of the sacred energy centers. The throat chakra represents authenticity, peace, and idealism.
Using deep cobalt, indigo or ultramarine blue in your home has a historical and cultural context that can add depth and worldly beauty to the space.
Blue Will Calm Your Mind
The color blue is associated with two of the most important elements of our world: water and air. In feng shui, the water element nourishes the wood element and helps circulate oxygen in the room. The impression of bountiful space, air, and water calm the mind and offer comfort.
When paired with green, blue can mimic the beauty of natural landscapes and ease the stress of urban living.
White and blue pairings are another classic combination. They are reminiscent of fluffy cumulus clouds in the sky or the white froth of waves breaking on a beach.
Lighter tones of blue create a cooling sensation, like clear water or ice. Darker tones can feel enveloping, like the deepest blue of a night sky.
This known calming effect is perhaps the reason that blue is so often used to decorate baby’s rooms. Research has even indicated that painting a child’s room light blue can foster brain development.
Artwork is a great way to introduce the color into your space with less commitment than painting an entire room. You can match the colors in your art with throw pillows or other decorative elements. In this way, you can create a calming sanctuary that you can take with you anywhere you go.
Blue Will Boost Your Productivity and Creativity
Like the vastness of space or the depths of the ocean, mystery is inherent in the color blue.
This sense of the unknown can represent spirituality or intellectual curiosity depending on your beliefs.
A 2009 article in “Science” magazine revealed the role of color in cognitive performance.
Blue and red were tested by scientists to track differences in creativity and attention to detail. The study discovered that when participants were shown blue cues they doubled their creative output.
“Through associations with the sky, the ocean and water, most people associate blue with openness, peace and tranquility,” Rui Juliet Zhu, one of the project scientists, said. “The benign cues make people feel safe about being creative and exploratory.
According to the Chinese art of feng shui, light blue is an ideal color for an office space. Take into account whether your work is detail-oriented or based around the ability to brainstorm. Adding elements of both red and blue can help to create an ideal space for both productivity and creativity.
Blue is the Color of Timeless Sophistication
Next time you watch the news take a look at the role models of our world. You might notice that a large percentage of political leaders wear blue ties, suits, or dresses. The color is also common on royalty. Queen Elizabeth’s favorite color is blue, emphasized by her large collection of baby blue hats.
Similarly, the color is often used as a sign of peace and truthfulness in diplomatic affairs. You’ll find it on the logos of many major institutions such as the UN, the WHO, and even NASA. It is also one of the most popular colors for flags around the world.
From Ancient Egypt to the Byzantine Empire to the modern political playing field, blue has stood the test of time.
Blue is all around us. Water reflects the blue of the sky. The sky and even human eyes take on the color blue because of the way that our eyes refract light waves. The color is present in flowers and fruits, ancient textiles, and modern blue jeans. Our world is immersed in the timeless beauty of this primary color.
Blue is universal and exquisite. Its classic appeal means that no matter how or where you use it, it will always be in style.
